Archive for the 'Asia' Category

It’s Thursday night, almost finished with the week. It’s been fantastic getting to know everyone in our Hong Kong office and learning about the Chinese New Year traditions. I’m starting to feel very comfortable here, of course will be leaving soon. The city (and the neighborhood I’m staying in) is so international, people assume I live here. During the working hours I’ve been conducting interviews for Hong Kong based travelers and it’s been going great.

Monday I had a Sichuan style lunch with my colleagues nice and spicy after work I visited a cocktail bar around my apartment and had a cocktail with gin in a little bathtub. And that will be it for Hong Kong cocktail culture. Then I ate dinner at a Korean fusion place which was OK and fell asleep early.

Tuesday for lunch I had dim sum with our small team and I tried chicken feet. Good to try as they are very popular here. You eat them by sucking off all the skin and the bit of meat for each piece, and putting the bone aside. Eh. After work I went to eat beef brisket noodle soup at a place called Kau Kee there is a line but it moves quickly. Worth it.

Then I walked through Central area and took the metro to Kowloon to visit the Temple St Market (the websites say to go, but not worth it) and then met up with my colleague for a second bowl of noodle soup. Shrimp wanton noodle soup this time. She was showing me how to put vinegar on my noodles but accidentally gave me a big dose of Chili oil. which was okay because I like spicy. Ha!

Wednesday for lunch we had an even bigger team lunch for different kind of Dim Sum. After work I visited the Victoria Park flower market and Lunar New Year Fair around Causeway Bay and Tin Hau stations. It was bonkers, and an interesting array of smells one after the other from stinky tofu to daffodils. That’s “nipplefruit” in the picture above.

It was so crowded that I was nervous. Then I walked back towards the hotel past the Wan Chai area where I had more wanton noodle soup for dinner. I kept walking and bumped into a different colleague! What are the odds. Then I walked home along the pier. I stopped needing a map.

Today for lunch I had fish balls noodle soup with a colleague, and went out to dinner with the other survey team manager based here and his wife. They took me to a traditional tea house restaurant with a great atmosphere and we ate Cantonese food which is fairly bland but good with lots of vegetables, and then to an old school dessert place.

SO cool. Then I got foot reflexology and will head to bed. Hope you’ve had a great week!

Hope you are well. I arrived in Hong Kong yesterday not to survey but to work out of the company’s Hong Kong office. It’s very exciting. The flight was direct and surprisingly easy. I sat next to a Vietnamese couple with an 8 months old baby Alice that threw up on me a little bit before we took off, but was a good sport otherwise. She didn’t cry at all and seemed to like me. I got to hold her a little. I was in a window seat in the front row of the section and even slept!. I didn’t watch any movies. Instead I read a bit and watched most of the first season of HBO’s “Ballers” which has been showing up on all the airline media sections this winter and is pretty entertaining.

Yesterday was about agressively trying to beat jet lag and enjoying a new place. It involved walking around the piers area, dim sum brunch, and a walk up to the Peak and through the botanical gardens. I started tripping over my own toes, something that happens from time to time to indicate exhaustion even if I think everything is okay. After that I checked into the hotel and took a shower and a little nap and an alarm for 7 so I could have dinner and not be really screwed with waking up at 3am. It was a struggle to get up. But then I had a great cocktail with blueberry jam in it at a creative cocktail bar and then more dim sum. Then I did foot reflexology and believe I also fell asleep during that.

Today I took the metro, which is great, and did the Dragon’s Back hike on the other side of Hong Kong island, then went to Din Tai Fung for lunch but got spicy wontons instead of the traditional xiao long bao. Then a little shopping around Causeway Bay area. For dinner visited a cosy French wine bar called La Cabane and had white wine and a fish dish with leeks. LOVE leeks. The guys at La Cabane were really cool and the music was also cool. They were playing a spotify playlist of summer hits from the early 2000s so maybe I’ll go back later this week. The music last night at the cocktail bar was also cool, more clubby. Trance songs I knew but different mixes. Those are always so great to hear.

After dinner this evening I got a manicure. All ready for work tomorrow! I’m learning a lot about this major port city. I understand why my dad said it was a place he’d really like to visit, it’s very water and boats-oriented. Maybe my parents canwill sail here! Hope you have a great week.

It’s been an excellent two weeks and I fly home tomorrow. The flights start in the afternoon so I’ll have time for a leisurely breakfast and not much else. I get back to Boston at 5:00pm. Flying back in time, It will be quite a long day. I’m so excited to see the people I love and practice yoga again, but I’m also a little sad about leaving Japan. I’m just starting to “get it” and be comfortable here. Also, I really like Japanese culture.

Yesterday was a great day. I had a meeting in the morning that was so fun and successful. I met with two men from a real estate management company. The meeting lasted an hour and a half. We discussed the US election for a while, then the expatriate real estate market, then we talked about differences between culture in the US and Japan and talked a lot about toilets. The men were shocked we don’t have “shower toilets” in the United States. After that I visited two Sake breweries near the meeting and had lunch at one of them. I got some Sake to share on Thanksgiving, and then worked in the Sannomiya area. Dinner was linguini with shrimps and olive oil at the hotel, and a cocktail of plum wine and ginger ale.

This morning I finished work and had a lunch meeting. Then I took to the bus to Arima, outside the main city closer to the Rokko Mountains, to visit an onsen. An onsen is a Japanese public bath. Like shower toilets, plums, bowing, taking off shoes, and formal exchange of business cards, public baths are also a big deal in Japan. I’m so glad I went.

This is what happens in the public bath (for women) — take off your shoes, drop off your clothes, take a shower at one of the stations, clean off your station (and little chair), put up your hair so it doesn’t get in the bath, then go soak. This one in Arima is special because there’s a hot spring bath. They had a regular bath, a “white ion” bath with extra oxygen bubbles, a hot spring bath that was golden (brown), an open air area which is great because the hot water feels extra nice against the cold air, cold showers, and a sauna. There are no bathing suits allowed, everyone is naked but they separate the baths for men and women!

I stayed there a long time, relaxing, skinny dipping in the hot spring. It wasn’t crowded, just a few people. They have a changing area and very high tech massage chairs that squeeze your legs for after you get dressed. Reading about Onsen before the trip, someone wrote that it’s nice to take off what separates us (the clothing) and focus on what makes us the same. After the bath I felt very renewed. Soft from all the sauna and hot springs, and very happy about being a human and a woman! I think public baths are very good for community building. If you go to Japan I’d highly recommend this experience.

I have been thinking, maybe the emphasis on super toilets with bidets everywhere is connected to the quantity of plums Japanese people consume. Hm.

Today I woke up early, left the little guest house with the tatami mats, and took the Shinkansen to Kobe. “Shin” is in front of the name for the bullet train stations “Shin-Yokohama” “Shin-Kobe.” But you don’t have to put two in!*

The train was crowded but very easy, only 45 or so minutes ride with one stop in Osaka. I got a very involved bento box (sour plums included) at station to eat on the train for breakfast. It was satisfying but only okay tasting.

I left my luggage at the hotel and went to work. It’s sunday but I worked because I’d like to do some touristy things here like go to the onsen in the mountain hot springs and some sake breweries (there are many right in Kobe), but not on a weekend when it would be too crowded.

Work took me to Rokko Island, which had one of the weirdest vibes of a place I’ve ever visited. It was eerie, pretty open spaces yet deserted with dated architecture and of course supermarkets with imported food. The malls were only half full of stores. Apparently expatriates live here; I’ll find out more tomorrow.

I had a throbbing headache all day today and felt especially lonely on the train, but now I feel all better. I didn’t sleep well on the tatami mats and am pretty happy to be in a nice hotel for the last three days of the trip. Also I have an awesome view. I didn’t try Kobe beef yet but maybe for lunch tomorrow. Have a great Sunday!

Hope you are having a nice weekend! Today was a day off and it was filled with sightseeing, eating, and shopping around Kyoto. Pure tourism, aside from a tiny bit of work on the morning, but finished before 8am.

First stop was the Gekkeikan museum to learn about Sake brewing and taste sake. It was underwhelming but for three dollars a solid activity. One thing I learned is that unlike wine, sake shouldn’t age… drink it now. Makes sense because sake is brewed like a beer because it’s made from a starch, like beer, instead of a fruit, like wine. So when people call it “rice wine” it’s very misleading. The museum was crowded, even before 10:00am. On the way there I got a street food breakfast, a hot rice cake with red bean paste, in order not to drink alcohol on an empty stomach.

After the sake museum I took the train(s–it was not close) to West Kyoto, to the Arashiyama area. First order was a proper meal. I visited a tea house and got a set lunch with rice, pickles, and huge sardines, and so much tea.

Three different kinds of green tea throughout the meal. They had some books about tea and Japanese culture so during lunch I read about traditional Japanese values and the way of the Samurai. After lunch I walked around the tea rooms with one of the women who worked there, and she taught me some things about the very traditional tea ceremony.

One tradition is always walk into a room leading with your right foot, and walk out leading with your left. And don’t step on the edges of the tatami mat. And drink all the tea at once, and slurp a little bit audibly when you’re finished so you can let the tea master know you’re done without having to use any words. Something to try at family dinner. Lunch was “sit on the floor” style which made my legs hurt a little and have pins and needles multiple times, even with all the yoga.

After the meal I walked around and visited Hogonin Temple (and gardens), walked around the Hozu river, and then visited Tenryiu-ji Zen temple (and gardens). My mom told me to visit the Zen temple, she was right, it was really cool! The inside, very sparse with tatami mats, and the garden shown in the picture.

I think it’s a thing for Japanese people to rent traditional Japanese dress to visit these sites. There are a lot of people in traditional clothing taking selfies and rental places for Kimonos and the equivalent for men. Kimonos are very beautiful especially with fall colors. After the temple I walked through a street lined with bamboo and wandered around not sure where. At this point it was getting dark. I visited a plum shop and tried the traditional Japanese pickled plums from 2% salt to 19% salt. Eek . I visited some other shops and got Sake cups for myself, and a few other gifts. I think if there were ever a time to get gifts, this would be it.

By then it was around 7:30pm and it was time for dinner. I walked into a shop that specialized in boiled tofu, and tofu everything. Apparently it’s pretty famous. On the set menu was boiled tofu (first course shown above), tofu in a warm orange with miso and chestnuts, sesame tofu with wasabi, and fried tofu. It was another sit-on-the-floor style dinner, still a little painful. My favorite dish was the sesame tofu with wasabi (it was a gooey texture and good flavor) but at this point I’m completely tofu-ed out and ready to try Kobe beef. Fortunately I’m headed there tomorrow.

So Kyoto during the peak foliage season (now): It’s so beautiful and colorful which makes it worth it, but so so crowded. I think if you want to have peace and a less expensive hotel, visit during a different time.

It’s been a nice three days since the last blog. Wednesday I woke up early in Tokyo and visited the Tsukiji Wholesale fish market (where they have the famous 4am tuna auctions).

It was just two stops away from my hotel. I’ve come to love the Tokyo metro system. Of course the market was closed that day (they have one “set holiday” per month and this was it) but the restaurants in the outer market were still open. I tried steamed oyster with ponzu sauce, grilled crab in its shell with miso paste, and then went to a sushi counter for some pieces, and finished off the meal with a mochi with a strawberry in it.

Then I had a meeting and worked the rest of the day. There were some stores I visited in Shibuya, which has a famous crowded crosswalk.

I walked around to find a good atmosphere intending to eat whatever was good. I decided on a restaurant that, when I walked in, the manager beamed! So welcoming. It was small, just 8-10 seats or so. He was super animated, fun, and very slightly heavier than average and didn’t speak English. I asked for no smoking? he said “yes smoking!” but I still ate there because it seemed like this guy would take care of me. I let him know that i’d eat whatever he thought was good. There were all sorts of dishes including some potato salad with something on it, I had to ask. Kind of looked like a sausage. It was “fish eggs” but honestly it was like a whole womb. I ate it all because that’s what’s respectful. And I like salty foods, and enjoy trying to figure out why people like to eat certain things if at first I think they are disgusting. At that dinner I got to eat all sorts of “presents” like edamame and extra special sake.

Thursday morning I woke up and had a meeting, the first one I was able to find on my own 🙂 and then took the train to Yokohama, which took only about 45 minutes. Yokohama is its own city but very close to Tokyo. Some people live in Tokyo and commute to Yokohama. Some people live in Yokohama and commute to Tokyo, but really only if they want their kids to go to the international school in Yokohama.

I had another meeting in the afternoon there, worked, walked around the main shopping street, ate dinner, not much else. This morning I finished work and took the Shinkansen, the bullet train, to Kyoto where I’ll be for the weekend. The bullet train is very cool, and obviously very fast. I’m staying in guest house here in Kyoto. It was a little difficult to find it, and “check in” but that was because I was a early for the reservation but the issues turned around quickly.

I went to Fushimi Inari shrine and had a “road soda” of Kyoto beer on the walk there:) and then stayed wandering around the shrine until dark. It’s on a mountain, which you can climb up and the entire way is covered with gates. At the bottom it was so busy, but at the top it was very peaceful. There must be at least 100,000 of the gates, so cool! On my way down I stopped for a matcha latte and then visited Gion area. There are a ton of shops and restaurants. It was a little busy for my taste at that point but I took a deep breath and appreciated it.

I walked around for a while visited a “leek-themed” restaurant and sat at the counter and got more “presents.” The chef let me taste things when I looked curious. I’m always curious and tried things that were only on the Japanese version of the menu, not for English speakers.

The past two days have been great. I’ve just come from dinner of dumplings, radish salad, and sake.

Yesterday I had the first experience with the metro at rush hour. It’s certainly crowded. At the entrance to some stations, the current of people is so strong it’s hard to get through. While the metro systems are pretty straightforward, addresses in Tokyo are not. Building addresses aren’t by number on street name, they are by section of block, which is not intuitive at all.

There are many buildings in each block… I’m not sure how it works yet. Most of the streets don’t even have names. I was late for meetings yesterday and today because of this issue. For both instances I had to call the offices and someone came downstairs and found me. Fortunately, everyone understands the issue.

After the meeting yesterday I had a lunch of eggs benedict at a fancy hotel, because that’s what I was craving. It’s survey, so I’m especially in tune to my own needs and cravings, and am in a pretty good position to satisfy most of them (the food ones, at least). I spoke to my sister during this lunch and she asked if Tokyo felt polluted. I said no (the city is very clean), but after thinking about it, I think there is notable air pollution. My eyes have been stinging. After lunch I priced the department stores in Ginza, the fancy shopping district.

Everything is expensive in Tokyo except for panty hose. Really great quality panty hose from fantastic brands and tights are 1/3 of the Boston prices here. Even less, maybe. My excitement only partially translated to the employees at Mitsukoshi who helped me figure out the right size. I tested them out today and will head back to stock up before leaving the city.

After the department stores I went on a search for Tempura. It was certainly a day of decadent foods. I found a corner bar and sat outside, drank sake, transcribed prices, and enjoyed the tempura. It started raining during the dinner, and the server/chef of the restaurant gave me an umbrella even though I told him he wouldn’t get it back. It was raining hard so I was thankful! Wow! After dinner I had a hair washing and drying appointment. They had warmed chairs. Mmm.

Today I worked, ate chicken katsu for lunch, and then went to the Muji store :). Then I went back to the hotel and did some hand washing of my clothes. Then walked around the neighborhood of my hotel to find some dinner. I chose a place because of the atmosphere. Turns out it was a dumplings and chicken wings specialty bar so I’d eat dumplings. Yes, they were outstanding. I ordered the ones they recommend with three garlic icons on the menu and ate them with homemade spicy sauce mixed with soy sauce, as you do. There were some businessmen there getting so drunk! I didn’t get drunk, my plan for tomorrow is to wake up early and visit Tsukiji fish market for a sushi breakfast, then it will be a long day of work.

Today was another big day. I woke early and walked to the Tokyo Tower area. There was a waiting list at the breakfast in my hotel so I ate rice crackers and bottled tea and espresso latte from Lawson’s to have something before a great option happened.

I visited a temple and then the Princess Park Tower hotel for work. I pretended to have work on the 33rd floor in order to go up to the sky bar and get a view. As you can see, worth it! After that, took the metro to Ueno. I walked around Ameyoko street, a market for cheap things and seems like a slightly shady area, and then around Ueno park. The park is huge. I ate some more gooey octopus pancake balls and tried some local foods from this Sunday event including a rice ball covered in sweet sesame paste.

Ueno Park is home to the Tokyo National Museum so I visited that and saw among other things a special exhibit on Zen Buddhism. My museum stamina was low. It was crowded and it’s a lot to take in when already the entire city is like a museum where I’m constantly learning new things. Also, it’s hard to pronounce the names of the artists and subjects so it was hard to stay focused. But still I was there for a few hours and saw approximately 25,000 scrolls.

Then I walked to Asakusa, the next neighborhood over. The walk was through more local residential areas, which was great. Asakusa is fantastic. First I visited a tiny Isakaya bar and drank sake, did some transcribing work, and had small dishes including fried tofu with fermented bean stuff on top served with hot mustard. Then kept walking around through the kitchen-supplies sector, then towards the Sensoji temple.

I had some matcha gelato from a multi-vendor complex that reminded me of Boston Public Market (so it was a little pricey not low-key, but awesome) and wandered around more. Asakusa is kind of far away, about 9 stops on the subway from my hotel’s stop, but without a transfer. I’d really like to go back there for some tempura over the next few days! It’s a really cool neighborhood with all sorts of low-key bars and shops.

It’s a full work day tomorrow and I begin with a meeting at 10:00am. I will try to go super early in order to avoid the rush hour metro traffic and find breakfast near the meeting. Hope you have a great Sunday!

It’s been a while since the last post and the last survey, but I’m back on the road for a two week survey of Tokyo, Yokohama, and Kobe, Japan. What fun! The flight to Tokyo was direct and uneventful, filled as usual with Bradley Cooper movies, some tears (I cry so easily during movies on Airplanes, it must be something about the air pressure) fidgeting, and decent snacks, until we were getting off the plane. The man sitting next to me (in the window, we were just two on one side said, “you look familiar!” Turns out we had just begun to work together and I’ll be visiting his office on Tuesday. Oh wow.We had quite a laugh about this, funny it didn’t come up during the 14 hours we sat very close to each other.

I took the Narita Express train from the airport to Tokyo Station, then a cab to the hotel. I was too overwhelmed and exhausted to do it by subway. Then went right to bed by 9.

Today was a big day. I visited three supermarkets, took two connecting subway rides, and two taxis. After the first market I visited a park next to the market. For lunch I ate at a sushi bar and had a great time hanging out with the chef. We didn’t speak any words in common so “talked” with eyes and smiles. Pretty great. After the last market I somehow stumbled upon a farmers market and Sake fest, though the sake fest was already winding down.

I walked around Harijuku for a while, and then went to Ginza for dinner. I ate at a little place that served these half-cooked pancake balls with octopus in them (food to eat with a beer). Sounds weird but surprise! they are delicious. I would have had a more substantial dinner but am too tired tonight. Also, I had a lot of food samples today from the markets and farmers market. Maybe more than I’ve had in one day ever and certainly tried some interesting things. Looking forward to a nice day tomorrow.

I hope you are well. The last two days were pretty nice. I worked a bit on Wednesday at the mall and did some online work and phone calls. I went to the mall as part of work and fun. Today I had a very relaxing spa day and packed up. I’m excited to head home! My flight leaves at 4:30 am so I have to leave the hotel at 2:00. It’s going to be a long trip. I had a small dinner so perhaps I’ll be able to have a few hours sleep before leaving. I have really enjoyed my time in India and hope to come back some day! Thanks for reading with me!